Adjustable table



Feb. 13, 1962 Filed Sept. 6, 1960 M- B. LEFFLER ADJUSTABLE TABLE W ri m M 22 o 2/ 8 27 /.9 7m L/ 3 IS" 32 3/ F57. 5

2 Sheets-Sheet l 1r 5 J .J 4

INVENTOR:

Feb. 13, 1962 M. B. LEFFLER 3,021,184

ADJUSTABLE TABLE Filed Sept. 6, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR: MARJORIE B. LEFFLER AT PM?! United States Patent 3,021,184 ADJUSTABLE TABLE Marjorie B. Leffier, 17 Sonndview Drive, Tuckahoe, N.Y. Filed Sept. 6, 1960, Ser. No. 54,083 1 Claim. (Cl. 31163) This invention relates generally to furniture, and has particular reference to an adjustable table.

It is a general object of the invention to provide a table which can be readily adjusted in such a way that in a setup or expanded condition it is perfectly square, with legs located only at its four corners, so that it may be employed as a conventional bridge table; and which in a relatively compacted or diminished condition defines a stable self-sustaining four-legged table of elongated character, both useful and ornamental.

Conventional bridge tables have corner legs adapted to fold against the under side of the table top so that the table in its collapsed condition is neither self-supporting nor useful. Some drop-leaf tables continue to be selfsupporting and useful when the leaves are folded down, but none of them can be opened to define a truly square top with legs only at the corners. It is an objective of this invention to provide a table structure which combines the desirable features of these two types of tables, and which at the same time obviates the disadvantageous features of each.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a table having the advantages referred to, which is simple and inexpensive from a structural standpoint, easy to adjust in the contemplated manner, attractive in appearance, staunch and sturdy yet light in weight, and which lends itself to manufacture on a commercial scale and yet allows a desirable range of selectivity in the nature and quality of the materials used.

Briefly stated, the invention involves a special design in which the square top of the table is formed of three sections defined by -a pair of spaced parallel lines extending across the top from a pair of opposite corners. This creates a middle section in the form of an oblique parallelogram, and two outer sections each of which is a scalene triangle. The three sections of the table top are adjustably held together to allow swinging movements of each triangular section with respect to the middle section. Two of the four legs are fixedly secured at the outermost corners of the middle section, and each of the other two legs is adjustable between a vertical disposition beneath the middle section and a position beneath the free corner of one of the outer sections when the latter is swung into a horizontal plane.

The preferred way of embodying these features in a thoroughly practical table, and thus achieving the objects and advantages of the invention, is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a table constructed in accordance with the invention, in set-up or bridge table adjustment;

FIGURE 2 is a view of the table from underneath, showing the manner in which the movable legs are adjustable;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the table in its compacted adjustment;

FIGURE 4 is a side view of the table along the direction 44 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a cross-sectional view substantially along the line 5-5 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional detail view along the line 66 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional detail view along the line 77 of FIGURE 2.

The table top consists of the middle section 10 and 3,2l,li Patented Feb. 13, 1962 wood is employed it may be chosen to have any desired quality, finish, color or graining. With the three sections in the single-plane relationship shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, they abut snugly against one another and conjointly define a smooth perfectly square plane surface. The square shape is achievable by the parallel lines of cleavage 13 and 14. extending from a pair of opposite corners 15 and 16 respectively. This imparts to the middle section 10 the shape of an elongated oblique parallelogram, as seen most clearly in FIGURES 2 and 3; and makes each outer section 11 and 12 a right-angled scalene triangle abuttable along its hypotenuse against the corresponding long side of the middle section It).

The sections 10, 11, 12 are adjustably joined together, and in the table herein chosen for illustration the securement is a hinged one. Thus, hinge elements 17 connect the outer section 11 to the middle section 10, and similar hinge elements 18 connect the opposite'outer section 12 to the opposite side of the middle section it For a purpose hereinafter to be explained, the width of the middle section 16 is of appreciable magnitude, being preferably about A the length of a diagonal of the square table top.

The table is provided with a pair of fixed legs 19 and 26 secured to the middle section lll/ adjacent to the outermost corners 15 and 16. For rigidifying purposes, and also to facilitate manufacture, each leg may be rigidly secured to the outer end of a batten which lies adjacent to the long edge of the section It Thus, the leg 19 has been shown secured to the end of a batten 21 which lies along the edge 13 and is rigidly secured to the underside of the section ltl by a bracket 22. The leg 2% is similarly secured to a batten 23 adjacent to the side 14 of the middle section, and secured to the underside of the table by a bracket 24.

The table is also provided with a pair of movable legs 25 and 26 swingable between the full-line positions shown in FIGURE 2 and the dot-and-dash positions shown. The leg 25 is rigidly secured to the end of a horizontal arm 27 which is hinged or pivoted at 28 to the medial region of the section 10. Similarly, the leg 26 is rigidly secured to the end of a horizontal arm 29 which is hinged to the underside of the table at 30.

Provided on the underside of the triangular section 11, near its free corner 31 is an abutment block 32 so positioned that the arm 27 encounters it as the leg 25 is swung to its outer position. The abutment 32 limits the movement of the arm 27 so that the leg 25 assumes a proper position directly adjacent to the corner 31. A similar abutment 33 is provided on the underside of the section 12 to limit the outward swinging of the arm 29 and thus assure proper positioning of the leg 26 adjacent to the corner 34.

In similar fashion there are abutments 35 and 36 on the underside of the middle section 10 to limit the inward swings of the arms 27 and 29 respectively.

The parts are so proportioned, with particular reference to the appreciable width of the middle section 10, that when thelegs 25 and 26 are swung to their positions beneath the section 10 they lie appreciably offset from the diagonal extending between the corners 15 and 16. This imparts stability to the table when it is adjusted into the compacted condition shown in FIGURES 3, 4 and 5.

Preferably each stop or abutment, and the corresponding horizontal arm which engages with it, are provided with interengageable but readily separable positioning eledowel 37 carried by one of the parts which come together, and a corresponding recess in the other part. In the preferred construction, the pin 37 is secured within the abutment 33 and projects from it toward the arm 29, the latter being provided with an opening into which the pin is adapted to enter snugly when the parts are brought together. Similar positioning pins of. this character have been shown in FIGURE 2 in association with the stops 32, 35 and 36, the pins being designated by the reference numeral 38.

The ability of the table to serve as a bridge table will be apparent from the description given. Each of the sides of the table is unencumbered so that players may sit comfortably around the table in the conventional manner. The table top is perfectly square, as it should be. In its compacted condition, the table remains stable and self-sustaining, and can be set aside along a wall of the room to serve as a useful and ornamental article of furniture. The obliquity of the shorter end walls adds to the attractiveness of the table.

It is to be understood that many of the details herein described may be modified in various ways without necessarily departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

In a table, a square top formed of three sections defined by a pair of spaced parallel lines extending across the top from a pair of opposite corners, whereby the middle section is an oblique parallelogram, hinges connecting each outer section in drop-leaf fashion to the middle section, a pair of fixed legs secured to the acute angled corners of the middle section, and a pair of adjustable legs swingably secured to the middle section and movable between inner positions beneath the middle section adjacent to the obtuse-angled corners thereof and outer positions directly beneath the free corners of the outer sections, whereby the table when extended is square with the legs directly at the corners of the square, said middle section having a width equal to about one-quarter the length of the diagonal of the table so that when the triangular outer sections of the table are dropped the middle section can itself serve as a self-sustaining stable four-legged table with the legs arranged at the corners of an oblique parallelogram.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 293,565 Conover Feb. 12, 1884 553,721 Piaget Jan. 28, 1896 2,101,725 Traficante Dec. 7, 1937 2,696,416 Stedma n Q. Dec. 7, 1954 

